Steve Kerr on Golden State's offseason: 'If Draymond's not back, we're not a championship contender'

Green can become a free agent this offseason

The Golden State Warriors are about to enter a transitional period. After winning the 2022 championship with the highest payroll in NBA history, they ran back largely the same roster only to lose in the second round to the Los Angeles Lakers. Now, the financial realities of the roster they've built are beginning to sink in. The Warriors are getting older and more expensive. They aren't going to be able to keep this group together forever.

But if head coach Steve Kerr has a say in the matter, at least one key member of the dynasty years will return next season: Draymond Green. If Green isn't back, according to Kerr, the Warriors will not have a realistic chance to win the 2024 championship. 

"If Draymond's not back, we're not a championship contender. We know that. He's that important to winning and to who we are. So I absolutely want him back. He's a competitor, he's an incredible defensive player, we can check all of those boxes, and he and I have built a really special relationship that has run the gamut over the years. We've had our share of run-ins, but we've been through so much, we really care about each other and work together well. He knows that he had a great season this year from a basketball perspective, but he knows that he also compromised things by what happened back in October. And so part of him coming back next year has to be about rebuilding some of that trust and respect that he's earned here for a long period of time. One thing that I love about Draymond is that he's always brutally honest and he can take that sort fo critique because he knows that it's the truth. So I want him back, I think we all want him back, and hopefully that's exactly what happens and we get ready to make another run next year."

Green has a player option this offseason that he can use to become an unrestricted free agent if he so chooses. Extension talks between the two sides didn't lead to a deal last offseason, and with Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole locked into long-term deals, retaining Green will be even costlier now. That price extends beyond Joe Lacob's checkbook. As Kerr hinted, Green's actions this season had an adverse effect on his own team. He punched Poole in training camp, which set the tone for an uneven championship defense. He got himself suspended in Game 3 of Golden State's first-round series against Sacramento as well.

That is the Green experience in a nutshell. He is an incredibly unique talent that is indispensable to the way Golden State plays on both ends of the floor. There is not a more versatile defender in all of basketball. The Warriors could ask for no better pick-and-roll partner and secondary ball-handler for Stephen Curry than Green. But rarely do those gifts come quietly. Eventually, the Warriors are going to decide that the cons of employing Green outweigh the pros. For now, Kerr believes that Green is still a necessity for Golden State's contending dreams.